Public schools have a specific funding allotment for the cost of transporting eligible students to and from school. The Legislature determines the amount of this allotment and has not increased it since 2019. Since then, inflation has driven all costs higher for school districts.
During the 2022-23 school year, the state transportation allotment provided $395 million to school districts. However, districts actually spent $1.98 billion on transportation costs. In other words, there is a significant gap — $1.6 billion per year — in the amount of revenue that the state provides specifically for transportation and the actual cost of providing those services.
The gap in transportation funding forces school districts to reduce bus routes and other services, and/or it pulls Basic Allotment dollars from other educational priorities. In other words, Basic Allotment dollars spent on transportation are dollars that otherwise might be spent on classroom programs. With inflation pushing all educational costs higher (utilities, insurance, salaries), those dollars are already scarce.
Legislators can address a significant need by increasing the transportation allotment for school districts. Additional funding would help close the current gap in transportation budgets and leave more dollars for teacher pay, academic instruction, and school safety.
For a resource that you can share with your legislators and communities, please see our one-page handout about the shortage of transportation funding facing Texas schools.
